Portillo Serves Up Fast-Casual Unit for Sale

The Portillo Restaurant Group Inc., which describes itself as the largest privately owned restaurant company in the Midwest, has hired Piper Jaffray to explore its financial alternatives, including a sale of its fast-casual division.

The Oak Brook, Ill.-based company’s main chain, Portillo’s Hot Dogs Inc., operates 38 stores that are decorated to fit themes ranging from the prohibition era through to retro. It traces its roots to a hot dog stand known as “The Dog House” that opened in 1963 with an $1,100 investment from the company’s founder, Richard J. Portillo.

“We’ve enjoyed significant growth over the past 50 years, experiencing same-store sales increases over the last 10 years in the Chicago-land area, even when the economy as a whole suffered,” Mr. Portillo, who’s also the company’s chief executive, said in a statement Wednesday.

The company, which recorded more than $300 million in revenue in 2013, owns other smaller chains including Barnelli’s Pasta Bowl and Honey-Jam Café, as well as a catering unit that ships items including Italian beef, hot dogs and ribs to customers in 50 states.

A sale of Portillo’s fast-casual unit would come at a time when the sector is in favor with investors. Fast-casual chain Zoe’s Kitchen Inc. has jumped 78% since its stock market debut earlier this month.